The Galaxy announced today they have signed two players with ties to the area: former top scorer Edson Buddle, who returns to the club after a year in Germany, and former UCLA playmaker Kyle Nakazawa, who grew up in Palos Verdes Estates and attended Peninsula High School.

Buddle, 30, scored a career-high 17 goals for the club in 2010, but signed with second division Ingolstadt. He scored 10 goals there, but his contract was terminated by the club in a money-saving move earlier this week. Buddle tried out unsuccessfully for a couple of European clubs, including West Ham United in England.

The Galaxy retained the Major League Soccer rights to Buddle, a fan favorite who was the club’s leading scorer for four consecutive seasons with 42 goals in 87 games.

“I am thrilled to be able to return to MLS and a club that has meant so much to me in my career,” Buddle said. “When I left for Germany last winter, I said that I hoped to be able to one day return to the Galaxy and help lead the club to an MLS Cup championship. That day is today and I look forward to the challenges that now lie ahead.”

The member of the U.S. 2010 World Cup squad also scored 90 goals in 231 regular season games during the first 10 years of his MLS career, making him the eighth leading scorer in League history.

Nakazawa, 23, comes to the Galaxy from the Philadelphia Union where he had one goal and three assists in 36 games over the last two seasons. The Union drafted the Torrance-born midfielder out of UCLA with the 33rd overall pick in the 2010 MLS SuperDraft. Nakazawa finished his college career with 12 goals in the 2009 season, making him the second-leading scorer in what was then the Pac-10.

The Galaxy also acquired a second-round draft pick along with Nakazawa, in exchange for an international roster spot.

Veteran journalist Nick Green is the beat reporter for the cities of Torrance, Carson and Lomita and also covers the South Bay's rapidly growing craft beer industry for the Daily Breeze. He has worked for newspapers on the West Coast since graduating in 1987 from the University of Washington and lives in Old Torrance with his wife and two cats. Follow him on Twitter @NickGreen007 and @BeerGogglesLA.